What Is Sweet Baby Inc.?
Sweet Baby Inc. crafts video game narratives promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, aiding or supplementing the writing staff of video game studios.
Source: Sweet Baby Inc.
The company is transparent about its goals and writing approach. However, it seems that the company’s mission has made it a target of an online harassment campaign.
Sweet Baby Inc. Is the Target of a Harassment Group
Recently, Sweet Baby Inc. consulted on games like “Alan Wake 2,” “Marvel’s Spider-Man 2,” and “Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.” Users on X and Kiwi Farms (a site known for organizing harassment campaigns) have been operating under the name “Sweet Baby Inc. Detected” to push back against Sweet Baby Inc.
Source: Alyssa Miller/Steam
The campaign started after users accused the company of forcibly injecting a “political agenda” into video game narratives by advocating for diversity.
Sweet Baby Inc.’s Involvement in Game Narratives Is Smaller Than the Group Thinks
According to the GameDeveloper, the studio’s contributions to video games have happened on a micro level, offering story feedback, work-shopping narrative beast, writing flavor text, and barks with inclusivity in mind.
Source: Warner Bro. Games/YouTube
However, Sweet Baby Inc. Detected has reframed the company’s work as shoehorning black or LGBTQ characters into games that they were not designed for.
The Harassment Worsens
Sweet Baby Inc. CEO Kim Belair stated in an interview that the harassment began in October 2023 around the release of “Spider-Man 2” and “Alan Wake 2.” Belair said that the worst of the hate came from users on 4chan, Kiwi Farms, and X.
Source: Inclusion FX/YouTube
Over the last several weeks, Belair observed the harassment worsening following the organization of the Steam Curation Page and Discord server to spread their conspiracy theories regarding Sweet Baby Inc.’s involvement with games.
The Group Dismiss Video Games With Sweet Baby Inc’s “Woke Agenda”
The group on Steam has established a mission goal to avoid any games that Sweet Baby Inc. has worked on, hoping to dismiss any “woke agenda” or diversity, inclusion, or non-hetero, cis white characters that do not fit the gamer’s desired narrative.
Source: Sony/YouTube
According to The Western Journal, the group currently has over 200,000 followers on Steam, and over 3,800 members on a chat group within Discord.
The Hate Group’s Evidence and Mission
The Steam page dedicates itself to listing the games worked on by Sweet Baby Inc. (although the company lists them on their site), but both the page and Discord serve as breeding grounds for rapidly spreading conspiracy theories.
Source: Raw Fury/YouTube
The bulk of the evidence that supports these conspiracy theories comes from GDC talks, and out-of-context clips from interviews that highlight comments that support the company’s mission statement.
What Happens Behind the Group’s Privacy Screen
Alyssa Mercante, a journalist from Kotaku, infiltrated the server for an hour before getting kicked out and reported that the group’s members were sharing posts“referencing Feminist Frequency founder Anita Sarkeesian, Marcus Aurelius quotes, and pictures of idealized female bodies in games.”
Source: Kotaku/Discord
Mercante also spoke with two members who explained why they believe the Discord and Stream page were important. They believed the groups could “identify” games developed by Sweet Baby Inc. and help them make “informed decisions” when purchasing games.
Why Do Members Join Sweet Baby Inc. Detected
“Sweet Baby Inc. is a symptom of other ideological worldviews that I believe have taken hold of the Western world, media, and gaming as a whole,” one member of the Discord to Mercante. The member believes that this lack of evidence would enable Sweet Baby Inc. to implement “race and identity group quotas in everything they are involved with.”
Source: PlayStation/YouTube
Ironically, Sweet Baby Inc. has structured its website and social media platforms to try to make its work as transparent as possible.
Sweet Baby Inc. Tries To Be as Transparent as Possible
“We care very deeply about getting more people into this industry, and increasing transparency in the ways that we work,” Belair noted. “The reason that we had public spaces at all was to talk more about it and to invite people to come talk to us so they can learn we can help them find their way in the industry.”
Source: Steam
Unfortunately, groups like Sweet Baby Inc. Detected have become a place for gamers triggered by “wokeness” to air their grievances. However, this type of outrage is nothing new in the gaming community.
Other Notable Controversies in the Video Game Industry
One of the most notable controversies that sparked outrage about “wokeness” in the video game industry involved Naughty Dog’s “The Last of Us Part 2.” (The video game has several controversies that sparked outrage in certain gaming communities).
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Some users complained that “The Last of Us Part 2” focused on Ellie and Dina’s relationship too much, a character named Lev who is struggling with his gender identity, the game’s racially diverse cast of characters, and Abby’s character design not fitting into a traditionally feminine appearance.
The Consequences of the Online Hate Group
There will always be gamers who feel outraged that video games are naturally becoming more diverse. Unfortunately, platforms like Steam and Discord are allowing these groups to continue to organize, creating an echo chamber that could lead to violent harassment both on and offline.
Source: Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels
Mercante and other journalists are attempting to dox some members who pose a big threat in groups like Sweet Baby Inc. Gaming platforms need to take action to help limit the harassment toward companies hired to do their jobs and write narratives that reflect the real world.